Conservative Party of Canada
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The Conservative Party of Canada (french: Parti conservateur du Canada), colloquially known as the Tories, is a
federal Federal or foederal (archaic) may refer to: Politics General *Federal monarchy, a federation of monarchies *Federation, or ''Federal state'' (federal system), a type of government characterized by both a central (federal) government and states or ...
political party in
Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
. It was formed in 2003 by the merger of the two main right-leaning parties, the Progressive Conservative Party (PC Party) and the
Canadian Alliance The Canadian Alliance (french: Alliance canadienne), formally the Canadian Reform Conservative Alliance (french: Alliance réformiste-conservatrice canadienne), was a centre-right to right-wing federal political party in Canada that existed ...
, the latter being the successor of the Western Canadian-based Reform Party. The party sits at the
centre-right Centre-right politics lean to the right of the political spectrum, but are closer to the centre. From the 1780s to the 1880s, there was a shift in the Western world of social class structure and the economy, moving away from the nobility and ...
to the right of the Canadian political spectrum, with their federal rival, the Liberal Party of Canada, positioned to their left. The Conservatives are defined as a "
big tent A big tent party, or catch-all party, is a term used in reference to a political party's policy of permitting or encouraging a broad spectrum of views among its members. This is in contrast to other kinds of parties, which defend a determined i ...
" party, practising "brokerage politics" and welcoming a broad variety of members, including "
Red Tories A Red Tory is an adherent of a centre to centre-right or paternalistic-conservative political philosophy derived from the Tory tradition, most predominantly in Canada but also in the United Kingdom and Australia. This philosophy tends to favour ...
" and " Blue Tories". From
Canadian Confederation Canadian Confederation (french: Confédération canadienne, link=no) was the process by which three British North American provinces, the Province of Canada, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick, were united into one federation called the Dominion ...
in 1867 until 1942, the original Conservative Party of Canada participated in numerous governments and had multiple names. However, by 1942, the main right-wing Canadian force became known as the Progressive Conservative Party. In the 1993 federal election, the PC Party's Western Canadian support transferred to the Reform Party. When it became clear that neither the PC Party nor the Reform Party/Canadian Alliance could beat the incumbent Liberals that governed since the 1993 election, an effort to unite the right-of-centre parties emerged. In 2003, the Canadian Alliance and the PCs merged, forming the Conservative Party of Canada. During the Conservative Party's governance of Canada from 2006 to 2015, its economic decisions included reducing sales tax, reducing
income taxes An income tax is a tax imposed on individuals or entities (taxpayers) in respect of the income or profits earned by them (commonly called taxable income). Income tax generally is computed as the product of a tax rate times the taxable income. Ta ...
, reducing business taxes, balancing the national budget, creating the
tax-free savings account A tax-free savings account (TFSA, french: links=no, Compte d'épargne libre d'impôt, CELI) is an account available in Canada that provides tax benefits for saving. Investment income, including capital gains and dividends, earned in a TFSA is ...
(TFSA), and creating the
Universal Child Care Benefit The Canada Child Benefit (CCB), previously the Canada Child Tax Benefit (CCTB), is an income-tested income support program for Canadian families. It is delivered as a tax-free monthly payment available to eligible Canadian families to help with the ...
. In social policy, the government eliminated the long-gun registry, introduced
mandatory minimum sentences Mandatory sentencing requires that offenders serve a predefined term for certain crimes, commonly serious and violent offenses. Judges are bound by law; these sentences are produced through the legislature, not the judicial system. They are inst ...
for violent crimes, raised the age of consent to 16 years of age, permitted the construction of several pipelines, and withdrew Canada from the Kyoto Protocol. The government also supported the State of Israel, negotiated the
Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement The Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) is a free-trade agreement between Canada and the European Union and its member states. It has been provisionally applied, thus removing 98% of the preexisting tariffs between the two parts. ...
(CETA), and negotiated the
Trans-Pacific Partnership The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), or Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement, was a highly contested proposed trade agreement between 12 Pacific Rim economies, Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Sin ...
(TPP). Under its first leader, Stephen Harper, the party governed with two minority governments after the federal elections of 2006 and
2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...
. It then won a majority government in the 2011 federal election before being defeated in the 2015 federal election by a majority Liberal government led by
Justin Trudeau Justin Pierre James Trudeau ( , ; born December 25, 1971) is a Canadian politician who is the 23rd and current prime minister of Canada. He has served as the prime minister of Canada since 2015 and as the leader of the Liberal Party since 2 ...
. Under its second and third leaders,
Andrew Scheer Andrew James Scheer (born May 20, 1979) is a Canadian politician who has served as the member of Parliament (MP) for Regina—Qu'Appelle since 2004. Scheer served as the 35th speaker of the House of Commons from 2011 to 2015, and was the lead ...
and
Erin O'Toole Erin Michael O'Toole (born January 22, 1973) is a Canadian politician who has been the member of Parliament (MP) for Durham since 2012. A member of the Conservative Party, O'Toole served as the party's leader and the leader of the Official ...
, the party remained in opposition after losing the elections in
2019 File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...
and
2021 File:2021 collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: the James Webb Space Telescope was launched in 2021; Protesters in Yangon, Myanmar following the coup d'état; A civil demonstration against the October 2021 coup in Sudan; Crowd shortly after t ...
, respectively. On September 10, 2022, Pierre Poilievre was elected as leader in the 2022 leadership election.


History


Predecessors

The Conservative Party is political heir to a series of right-of-centre parties that have existed in Canada, beginning with the
Upper Canada Tories The Tory movement in Upper Canada was formed from the elements of the Family Compact following the War of 1812. It was an early political party, merely a group of like minded conservative elite in the early days of Canada. The Tories would later ...
of the nineteenth century.
John A. Macdonald Sir John Alexander Macdonald (January 10 or 11, 1815 – June 6, 1891) was the first prime minister of Canada, serving from 1867 to 1873 and from 1878 to 1891. The dominant figure of Canadian Confederation, he had a political career that sp ...
and
George-Étienne Cartier Sir George-Étienne Cartier, 1st Baronet, (pronounced ; September 6, 1814May 20, 1873) was a Canadian statesman and Father of Confederation. The English spelling of the name—George, instead of Georges, the usual French spelling—is explained ...
later founded the Liberal-Conservative Party. The party became known simply as the
Conservative Party The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right. Political parties called The Conservative P ...
after 1873, and the Progressive Conservative Party after 1942. Like its historical predecessors and conservative parties in some other
Commonwealth nations The Commonwealth of Nations, simply referred to as the Commonwealth, is a political association of 56 member states, the vast majority of which are former territories of the British Empire. The chief institutions of the organisation are the Co ...
(such as the Conservative Party of the United Kingdom), members of the present-day Conservative Party of Canada are sometimes referred to as "Tories". The modern Conservative Party of Canada is also legal heir to the heritage of the historical conservative parties by virtue of assuming the assets and liabilities of the former Progressive Conservative Party upon the merger of 2003. In 1984, the Progressive Conservative Party's electoral fortunes made a massive upturn under its new leader, Brian Mulroney, who mustered a large coalition of westerners irritated over the Liberal government's
National Energy Program The National Energy Program (french: Programme énergétique national, NEP) was an energy policy of the Canadian federal government from 1980 to 1985. Created under the Liberal government of Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau by Energy Minister Marc ...
, suburban and small-town Ontarians, and soft Quebec nationalists who were angered over Quebec not having distinct status in the
Constitution of Canada The Constitution of Canada (french: Constitution du Canada) is the supreme law in Canada. It outlines Canada's system of government and the civil and human rights of those who are citizens of Canada and non-citizens in Canada. Its contents a ...
signed in 1982. This led to a huge landslide victory for the Progressive Conservative Party. In the late 1980s and 1990s, federal conservative politics became split by the creation of a new western-based protest party, the populist and social conservative
Reform Party of Canada The Reform Party of Canada (french: Parti réformiste du Canada) was a right-wing populist and conservative federal political party in Canada that existed under that name from 1987 to 2000. Reform was founded as a Western Canada-based protest ...
created by
Preston Manning Ernest Preston Manning (born June 10, 1942) is a Canadian retired politician. He was the founder and the only leader of the Reform Party of Canada, a Canadian federal political party that evolved into the Canadian Alliance in 2000 which in tur ...
, the son of an Alberta Social Credit premier,
Ernest Manning Ernest Charles Manning, (September 20, 1908 – February 19, 1996), a Canadian politician, was the eighth Premier of Alberta between 1943 and 1968 for the Social Credit Party of Alberta. He served longer than any other premier in Alberta's histor ...
. Westerners reportedly felt betrayed by the federal Progressive Conservative Party, seeing it as catering to Quebec and urban Ontario interests over theirs. In 1989, Reform made headlines in the political scene when its first
member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members o ...
(MP),
Deborah Grey Deborah Cleland Grey, (born July 1, 1952) is a retired Canadian member of Parliament from Alberta for the Reform Party of Canada, the Canadian Alliance, and the Conservative Party of Canada. She was the first female leader of the Opposition i ...
, was elected in a
by-election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, a bye-election in Ireland, a bypoll in India, or a Zimni election (Urdu: ضمنی انتخاب, supplementary election) in Pakistan, is an election used to f ...
in Alberta, which was a shock to the PCs, who had almost complete electoral dominance over the province for years. Another defining event for western conservatives was when Mulroney accepted the results of an unofficial Senate election held in Alberta, which resulted in the appointment of a Reformer,
Stanley Waters Lieutenant-general Stanley Charles Waters (June 14, 1920 – September 25, 1991) was Canada's first senator to be appointed to his Senate seat following a non-binding provincial Senate election. Early life Born in Winnipeg and educated at Stra ...
, to the Senate. In the 1993 election, support for the Progressive Conservative Party collapsed, and the party's representation in the House of Commons dropped from an absolute majority of seats to only two. Meanwhile, the Reform Party took
Western Canada Western Canada, also referred to as the Western provinces, Canadian West or the Western provinces of Canada, and commonly known within Canada as the West, is a Canadian region that includes the four western provinces just north of the Canada†...
and became the dominant conservative party in Canada. The problem of the split on the right was accentuated by Canada's
single member plurality Plurality voting refers to electoral systems in which a candidate, or candidates, who poll more than any other counterpart (that is, receive a plurality), are elected. In systems based on single-member districts, it elects just one member per ...
electoral system, which resulted in numerous seats being won by the Liberal Party, even when the total number of votes cast for PC and Reform Party candidates was substantially in excess of the total number of votes cast for the Liberal candidate.


Foundation and early history

In 2003, the
Canadian Alliance The Canadian Alliance (french: Alliance canadienne), formally the Canadian Reform Conservative Alliance (french: Alliance réformiste-conservatrice canadienne), was a centre-right to right-wing federal political party in Canada that existed ...
(formerly the Reform Party) and Progressive Conservative parties agreed to merge into the present-day Conservative Party. On October 15, 2003, after closed-door meetings were held by the Canadian Alliance and Progressive Conservative Party, Stephen Harper (then the leader of the Canadian Alliance) and
Peter MacKay Peter Gordon MacKay (born September 27, 1965) is a Canadian lawyer and politician. He was a Member of Parliament from 1997 to 2015 and has served as Minister of Justice and Attorney General (2013–2015), Minister of National Defence (2007â ...
(then the leader of the Progressive Conservatives) announced the "'Conservative Party Agreement-in-Principle", thereby merging their parties to create the new Conservative Party of Canada. After several months of talks between two teams of emissaries, consisting of
Don Mazankowski Donald Frank Mazankowski (July 27, 1935 – October 27, 2020) was a Canadian politician who served as a cabinet minister under prime ministers Joe Clark and Brian Mulroney, including as deputy prime minister under Mulroney. After retiring fro ...
,
Bill Davis William Grenville Davis, (July 30, 1929 – August 8, 2021) was a Canadian politician who served as the 18th premier of Ontario from 1971 to 1985. Davis was first elected as the member of provincial Parliament for Peel in the 1959 provincia ...
and
Loyola Hearn Loyola Hearn, (born March 25, 1943) is a Canadian diplomat and former politician. Hearn is the former Canadian Ambassador to Ireland. He served as a Member of the House of Commons of Canada from 2000 to 2008, and as Minister of Fisheries and Oc ...
on behalf of the PCs, and Ray Speaker, Senator
Gerry St. Germain Gerry St. Germain (born November 6, 1937) is a former Canadian politician. St. Germain served as a Conservative senator for British Columbia and previously served as a Member of Parliament. Early life and career Born in Manitoba of Metis ...
and Scott Reid on behalf of the Alliance, the deal came to be. On December 5, 2003, the agreement-in-principle was ratified by the membership of the Alliance by a margin of 96 percent to 4 percent in a national referendum conducted by postal ballot. On December 6, the PC Party held a series of regional conventions, at which delegates ratified the Agreement-in-Principle by a margin of 90% to 10%. On December 7, the new party was officially registered with
Elections Canada Elections Canada (french: Élections Canada)The agency operates and brands itself as Elections Canada, its legal title is Office of the Chief Electoral Officer (). is the non-partisan agency responsible for administering Canadian federal electio ...
. Senator John Lynch-Staunton, a PC, was named interim leader, pending the outcome of the party's inaugural leadership election. The merger process was opposed by some elements in both parties. In the PCs in particular, the merger process resulted in organized opposition, and in a substantial number of prominent members refusing to join the new party. Former leadership candidate
David Orchard David Orchard (born June 28, 1950) is a Canadian author and political figure, member of the Liberal Party of Canada, who was the Liberal Party candidate for the Saskatchewan riding of Desnethé—Missinippi—Churchill River in the 2008 federal ...
argued that his written agreement with
Peter MacKay Peter Gordon MacKay (born September 27, 1965) is a Canadian lawyer and politician. He was a Member of Parliament from 1997 to 2015 and has served as Minister of Justice and Attorney General (2013–2015), Minister of National Defence (2007â ...
, which had been signed a few months earlier at the 2003 Progressive Conservative Leadership convention, excluded any such merger. Orchard announced his opposition to the merger before negotiations with the Canadian Alliance had been completed. Over the course of the following year, Orchard led an unsuccessful legal challenge to the merger of the two parties. In October and November, during the course of the PC party's process of ratifying the merger, three sitting Progressive Conservative MPs — André Bachand, John Herron and former prime minister
Joe Clark Charles Joseph Clark (born June 5, 1939) is a Canadian statesman, businessman, writer, and politician who served as the 16th prime minister of Canada from 1979 to 1980. Despite his relative inexperience, Clark rose quickly in federal polit ...
—announced their intention not to join the new Conservative Party caucus. In the early months following the merger, MP
Rick Borotsik Rick Borotsik (born September 8, 1950) is a politician in Manitoba, Canada. He served as Mayor of Brandon from 1989 to 1997, was a member of the House of Commons of Canada from 1997 to 2004, and was elected to the Legislative Assembly of Manito ...
, who had been elected as Manitoba's only PC, became openly critical of the new party's leadership, and former leadership candidate
Scott Brison Scott A. Brison (born May 10, 1967) is a Canadian former politician from Nova Scotia. Brison served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for the riding of Kings-Hants from the 1997 federal election until July 2000, then from November 2000 to Febru ...
left the party. Brison and Herron ran for the Liberal Party in the next election, while Clark, Bachand and Borotsik retired. Three senators, William Doody,
Norman Atkins Norman Kempton Atkins (June 27, 1934 – September 28, 2010) was a Canadian Senator and a political figure in Canada. Born in Montclair, New Jersey, Atkins was a graduate of Appleby College in Oakville and of Acadia University in Wolfville ...
, and
Lowell Murray Lowell Murray, (born 26 September 1936) is a former Canadian senator and long-time activist with the federal Progressive Conservative Party. Education Murray graduated from St. Francis Xavier University in 1955. He met 16-year-old Brian Mu ...
, declined to join the new party and continued to sit in the upper house as a
rump Rump may refer to: * Rump (animal) ** Buttocks * Rump steak, slightly different cuts of meat in Britain and America * Rump kernel, software run in userspace that offers kernel functionality in NetBSD Politics *Rump cabinet * Rump legislature * Ru ...
caucus of Progressive Conservatives. In February 2005, Liberals appointed two anti-merger Progressive Conservatives,
Nancy Ruth Nancy Ruth Rowell Jackman (born January 6, 1942) is a Canadian heiress, activist, philanthropist and former Canadian Senator. She was appointed by Prime Minister Paul Martin, on March 24, 2005. While initially appointed as a Progressive Cons ...
and
Elaine McCoy Elaine Jean McCoy (March 7, 1946December 29, 2020) was a Canadian politician from Alberta. She was a member of the Senate of Canada. In 2005, McCoy was appointed to the Senate. She designated herself a member of the Progressive Conservative ...
, to the Senate. In March 2006, Nancy Ruth joined the new Conservative Party. On January 14, 2004, former Alliance leadership candidate Keith Martin left the party, and sat temporarily as an independent. He was re-elected, running as a Liberal, in the 2004 election, and again in 2006 and 2008.


Inaugural leadership election

In the immediate aftermath of the merger announcement, some Conservative activists hoped to recruit former Ontario premier
Mike Harris Michael Deane Harris (born January 23, 1945) is a Canadian retired politician who served as the 22nd premier of Ontario from 1995 to 2002 and leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario (PC Party) from 1990 to 2002. During his time ...
for the leadership. Harris declined the invitation, as did
New Brunswick New Brunswick (french: Nouveau-Brunswick, , locally ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. It is the only province with both English and ...
premier Bernard Lord and
Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...
premier
Ralph Klein Ralph Philip Klein (November 1, 1942 – March 29, 2013) was a Canadian politician and journalist who served as the 12th premier of Alberta and leader of the Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta from 1992 until his retirement in 20 ...
. Outgoing Progressive Conservative leader
Peter MacKay Peter Gordon MacKay (born September 27, 1965) is a Canadian lawyer and politician. He was a Member of Parliament from 1997 to 2015 and has served as Minister of Justice and Attorney General (2013–2015), Minister of National Defence (2007â ...
also announced he would not seek the leadership, as did former
Democratic Representative Caucus The Democratic Representative Caucus, also called the Democratic Representative Association, was a parliamentary group in the 37th Canadian Parliament consisting of Members of Parliament who left the Canadian Alliance in 2001 in protest against th ...
leader
Chuck Strahl Charles Richard "Chuck" Strahl (born February 25, 1957) is a Canadian businessman and politician. He was a Member of Parliament from 1993 to 2011. First elected for the Reform Party, he was the leader of the Democratic Representative Caucus tha ...
.
Jim Prentice Peter Eric James Prentice (July 20, 1956 – October 13, 2016) was a Canadian politician who served as the 16th premier of Alberta from 2014 to 2015. In the 2004 federal election he was elected to the House of Commons of Canada as a candidat ...
, who had been a candidate in the 2003 PC leadership contest, entered the Conservative leadership race in mid-December but dropped out in mid-January because of an inability to raise funds so soon after his earlier leadership bid. In the end, there were three candidates in the party's first leadership election: former
Canadian Alliance The Canadian Alliance (french: Alliance canadienne), formally the Canadian Reform Conservative Alliance (french: Alliance réformiste-conservatrice canadienne), was a centre-right to right-wing federal political party in Canada that existed ...
leader Stephen Harper, former
Magna International Magna International Inc. is a Canadian parts manufacturer for automakers. It is one of the largest companies in Canada and was recognized on the 2020 ''Forbes'' Global 2000. The company is the largest automobile parts manufacturer in North Americ ...
CEO
Belinda Stronach Belinda Caroline Stronach (Born May 2, 1966) is a Canadian businesswoman, philanthropist and a former Member of Parliament (MP) in the House of Commons of Canada from 2004 to 2008. Originally elected as a Conservative, she later crossed the fl ...
, and former Ontario provincial PC Cabinet minister
Tony Clement Tony Peter Clement (born January 27, 1961) is a Canadian former federal politician and former Member of Parliament for Parry Sound—Muskoka in Ontario. Before entering federal politics, Clement served as an Ontario cabinet minister, including ...
. Voting took place on March 20, 2004. A total of 97,397 ballots were cast. Harper won on the first ballot with 56.2% of the vote; Stronach received 34.5%, and Clement received 9.4%.


Stephen Harper (2004–2015)


In opposition (2004–2006)

Two months after Harper's election as leader, Prime Minister
Paul Martin Paul Edgar Philippe Martin (born August 28, 1938), also known as Paul Martin Jr., is a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as the 21st prime minister of Canada and the leader of the Liberal Party of Canada from 2003 to 2006. The son o ...
called a general election for June 28, 2004. For the first time since the 1993 election, a Liberal government would have to deal with an opposition party that was generally seen as being able to form government. The Liberals attempted to counter this with an early election call, as this would give the Conservatives less time to consolidate their merger. During the first half of the campaign, polls showed a rise in support for the new party, leading some pollsters to predict the election of a minority Conservative government. Momentum stalled after several Conservative candidates made controversial remarks about
homosexuality Homosexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or sexual behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality is "an enduring pattern of emotional, romantic, and/or sexual attractions" to pe ...
,
official bilingualism An official is someone who holds an office (function or mandate, regardless whether it carries an actual working space with it) in an organization or government and participates in the exercise of authority, (either their own or that of their ...
and
abortion Abortion is the termination of a pregnancy by removal or expulsion of an embryo or fetus. An abortion that occurs without intervention is known as a miscarriage or "spontaneous abortion"; these occur in approximately 30% to 40% of pre ...
, allowing the Liberal Party to warn of a "hidden agenda". Ultimately, Harper's new Conservatives emerged from the election with a larger parliamentary caucus of 99 MPs while the Liberals were reduced to a minority government of 135 MPs, twenty short of a majority. In 2005, some political analysts such as former Progressive Conservative pollster
Allan Gregg Allan Gregg is a Canadian pollster, political advisor, television interviewer and pundit. Early life Gregg was born in Edmonton, Alberta. He was the eldest child in his family which consisted of four boys and one girl. Gregg graduated from Harr ...
and ''
Toronto Star The ''Toronto Star'' is a Canadian English-language broadsheet daily newspaper. The newspaper is the country's largest daily newspaper by circulation. It is owned by Toronto Star Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary of Torstar Corporation and pa ...
'' columnist
Chantal Hébert Chantal St-Cyr Hébert (born 1954) is a Canadian journalist and political commentator. Life and career Hébert was born on April 24, 1954, in Ottawa, Ontario. She is the oldest of five children. In 1966 her family moved to Toronto where the 12 ...
suggested that the then-subsequent election could result in a Conservative government if the public were to perceive the Tories as emerging from the party's founding convention (then scheduled for March 2005 in Montreal) with clearly defined, moderate policies with which to challenge the Liberals. The convention provided the public with an opportunity to see the Conservative Party in a new light, appearing to have reduced the focus on its controversial social conservative agenda. It retained its fiscal conservative appeal by espousing tax cuts, smaller government, and more decentralization by giving the provinces more taxing powers and decision-making authority in joint federal-provincial programs. The party's law and order package was an effort to address rising homicide rates, which had gone up 12% in 2004. On November 24, 2005, Harper introduced a
motion of no confidence A motion of no confidence, also variously called a vote of no confidence, no-confidence motion, motion of confidence, or vote of confidence, is a statement or vote about whether a person in a position of responsibility like in government or m ...
which, with the backing of the other two opposition parties, passed on November 28, 2005. This resulted in an 2006 Canadian federal election, election scheduled for January 23, 2006. The Conservatives started off the first month of the campaign by making a series of policy-per-day announcements, which included a Goods and Services Tax (Canada), Goods and Services Tax reduction and a child-care allowance. These announcements played to Harper's strengths as a policy wonk, as opposed to the 2004 election and summer 2005 where he tried to overcome the perception that he was cool and aloof. Though his party showed only modest movement in the polls, Harper's personal approval numbers, which had always trailed his party's significantly, began to rise. In addition, the party also received more Newspaper endorsements in the Canadian federal election, 2006, newspaper endorsements than in 2004. On January 23, 2006, the Conservatives won 124 seats, compared to 103 for the Liberals. The results made the Conservatives the largest party in the 308-member House of Commons, enabling them to form a Minority governments in Canada, minority government.


In government (2006–2015)

On February 6, 2006, Harper and 28th Canadian Ministry, his Cabinet were sworn in. The Conservative Party confronted the In and Out scandal, regarding improper election spending during the 2006 election. The government's 2006 Canadian federal budget, first budget produced a nearly $14 billion surplus, a number slightly greater than the Martin government. The budget also drastically increased military spending and scrapped funding for the Kyoto Protocol and the Kelowna Accord. Later, the government introduced the
tax-free savings account A tax-free savings account (TFSA, french: links=no, Compte d'épargne libre d'impôt, CELI) is an account available in Canada that provides tax benefits for saving. Investment income, including capital gains and dividends, earned in a TFSA is ...
(TFSA). The government passed the Veterans' Bill of Rights, which guaranteed benefits for veterans from Veterans Affairs Canada, in addition to guaranteeing equality of veterans and referring to them as "special citizens". The government also passed the Québécois nation motion which would "recognize Quebec as a nation within a united Canada." Despite its Social conservatism in Canada, social conservative past in the Canadian Alliance, the government did not attempt to reverse the Same-sex marriage in Canada, same-sex marriage law implemented by the Martin government nor did it attempt to make changes to abortion in Canada, abortion laws. Deadlock between the Conservatives and the Liberals, the New Democratic Party, and the Bloc Québécois led to the calling of the 2008 Canadian federal election, October 2008 federal election, in which the Conservatives won a stronger minority. Shortly after, the Conservatives fought off a vote of non-confidence by 2008–2009 Canadian parliamentary dispute, a potential governing coalition of opposition parties by Prorogation in Canada, proroguing parliament. In his second term, Harper's government responded to the Financial crisis of 2007–2008, recession of 2007–2008 by introducing the 2009 Canadian federal budget, Economic Action Plan that implemented major personal income tax cuts. However, these tax cuts, along with increases in spending to combat the financial crisis, grew the deficit spending, deficit to $55.6 billion – Canada's largest federal deficit up to that time. A March 2011 non-confidence vote that found the Harper government to be in contempt of Parliament dissolved 40th Canadian Parliament, Parliament and triggered 2011 Canadian federal election, an election. In this election, the Conservatives won a majority government. The Harper government withdrew Canada from the Kyoto Protocol and repealed the long-gun registry. In foreign policy, the government passed the ''Anti-terrorism Act, 2015, Anti-terrorism Act'', launched Operation Impact to combat ISIL, negotiated the
Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement The Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) is a free-trade agreement between Canada and the European Union and its member states. It has been provisionally applied, thus removing 98% of the preexisting tariffs between the two parts. ...
(CETA) with the European Union, and negotiated the
Trans-Pacific Partnership The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), or Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement, was a highly contested proposed trade agreement between 12 Pacific Rim economies, Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Sin ...
(TPP). The Conservatives also gained controversy surrounding the Canadian Senate expenses scandal and the 2011 Canadian federal election voter suppression scandal, Robocall scandal; the latter involved robocalls and real-person calls that were designed to result in voter suppression in the 2011 election. In economic policy, the government launched Canada's Global Markets Action Plan to generate employment opportunities for Canadians by expanding Canadian businesses and investment in other countries, and balanced budget, balanced the budget in the 2014 Canadian federal budget, 2014 federal budget, producing a minor deficit of $550 million. In the 2015 federal election, after nearly a decade in power, the Conservatives suffered a landslide victory, landslide defeat at the hands of
Justin Trudeau Justin Pierre James Trudeau ( , ; born December 25, 1971) is a Canadian politician who is the 23rd and current prime minister of Canada. He has served as the prime minister of Canada since 2015 and as the leader of the Liberal Party since 2 ...
and his Liberal Party. Harper stepped down as leader on the election day on October 19. Journalist John Ibbitson of ''The Globe and Mail'' described Harper as "the most conservative leader Canada has ever known."


In opposition (2015–present)


First interim leadership (2015–2017)

Following the election of the Liberals and Harper's resignation as party leader in the 2015 election, it was announced that an Interim leader (Canada), interim leader would be selected to serve until a new leader could be chosen. That was completed at the caucus meeting of November 5, 2015 where Rona Ambrose, MP for Sturgeon River—Parkland and a former cabinet minister, was elected by a vote of MPs and Senators. Some members of the party's national council were calling for a leadership convention as early as May 2016 according to ''Maclean's'' magazine. However, some other MPs wanted the vote to be delayed until the spring of 2017. On January 19, 2016, the party announced that a permanent leader will be chosen on May 27, 2017.


Andrew Scheer (2017–2020)

On September 28, 2016, former Speaker of the House of Commons (Canada), Speaker of the House of Commons
Andrew Scheer Andrew James Scheer (born May 20, 1979) is a Canadian politician who has served as the member of Parliament (MP) for Regina—Qu'Appelle since 2004. Scheer served as the 35th speaker of the House of Commons from 2011 to 2015, and was the lead ...
announced his bid for the 2017 Conservative Party of Canada leadership election, leadership of the party. On May 27, 2017, Scheer was elected as the second permanent leader of the Conservative Party of Canada, beating runner up MP Maxime Bernier and more than 12 others with 50.95% of the vote through 13 rounds. Under Scheer, the Conservatives prioritized repealing the Liberal government's Carbon pricing in Canada, carbon tax, Pipelines in Canada, pipeline construction, and balanced budget, balancing the budget within five years had they formed government in 2019. Scheer is a social conservative; he is personally pro-life and opposes same-sex marriage, though like Harper, he stated he wouldn't overturn the legality of both laws. The Conservative Party entered the 2019 Canadian federal election, October 2019 federal election campaign neck-in-neck with the Liberals after the SNC-Lavalin affair earlier that year involving Justin Trudeau, but the election resulted in a Liberal minority government victory. The Conservatives did, however, win the largest share of the popular vote, and gained 26 seats. Notably, they won every single seat in Saskatchewan and all but Edmonton Strathcona, one in
Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...
. While the Conservative Party has historically been highly successful in Alberta and Saskatchewan, some point to a growing sense of Western alienation to explain the results. Following the election, Scheer faced criticism from within the party for failing to defeat Trudeau, who gained criticism for his handling of the SNC-Lavalin affair and for his wearing of brownface and blackface; the latter incident was made public during the election campaign. Scheer announced his pending resignation on December 12, 2019, after the CBC News, CBC reported that the Conservative party had been paying part of his children's private school tuition. He remained party leader, until his successor was chosen in August 2020.


Erin O'Toole (2020–2022)

2020 Conservative Party of Canada leadership election, A leadership election to replace Scheer was held in 2020, which was won by former Minister of Veterans Affairs (Canada), Veterans Affairs Minister
Erin O'Toole Erin Michael O'Toole (born January 22, 1973) is a Canadian politician who has been the member of Parliament (MP) for Durham since 2012. A member of the Conservative Party, O'Toole served as the party's leader and the leader of the Official ...
on August 24, 2020. Though running for the leadership on a "true blue" platform, O'Toole started to nudge the Conservative Party to the centrism, political centre as leader. Despite campaigning against the Liberal government's carbon tax during his leadership campaign, O'Toole reversed his position in April 2021, instead advocating for a low carbon savings account. O'Toole is pro-choice and supports same-sex marriage, positions heavily different from his two predecessors as leader. Prime Minister Trudeau called the 2021 Canadian federal election, September 2021 federal election in the hopes of winning a majority government, though in the middle of the campaign O'Toole's Conservatives were neck and neck, if not slightly ahead of the Liberals in Opinion polling for the 2021 Canadian federal election, the polls. During the campaign, O'Toole stated he would balance the budget within the next 10 years and reversed his support for repealing the Liberal government's Firearms regulation in Canada, "assault-style" weapons ban. In a similar manner to the 2019 election, the Conservatives again won the popular vote but fell short of gaining the largest amount of seats, enabling the Liberal Party under
Justin Trudeau Justin Pierre James Trudeau ( , ; born December 25, 1971) is a Canadian politician who is the 23rd and current prime minister of Canada. He has served as the prime minister of Canada since 2015 and as the leader of the Liberal Party since 2 ...
to form another minority government. As a result, party members were undecided on whether he should continue as leader. On October 5, the Conservative caucus voted to adopt the provisions of the Reform Act (Canada), ''Reform Act'', giving caucus the power to trigger a leadership review. O'Toole denied that it represented a threat to his leadership, insisting that the caucus was united as a team and that, as a supporter of the Act, he had encouraged his caucus to adopt all of its provisions. On January 31, 2022, Conservative Calgary Heritage MP Bob Benzen submitted a letter with signatures from 35 Conservative MPs calling for a leadership review on O'Toole's leadership to the Conservative caucus chair, Scott Reid. In the letter, Benzen criticized O'Toole's reversal on repealing the Liberal government's carbon tax and assault weapons ban. On February 2, 2022, O'Toole was voted out as leader by a margin of 73 to 45 votes.


Second interim leadership (2022)

Then-deputy leader of the Conservative Party Candice Bergen (politician), Candice Bergen was elected interim leader the same day O'Toole was ousted. Bergen's position as interim leader is set to last only a few months as 2022 Conservative Party of Canada leadership election, a new leadership election is scheduled to be held. Conservative MP and former cabinet minister Pierre Poilievre, Conservative MP and former leadership candidate Leslyn Lewis, Independent (formerly Progressive Conservative) Member of Ontario Provincial Parliament Roman Baber, former leader of the now-defunct Progressive Conservative Party of Canada and former Premier of Quebec Jean Charest, former MP, former leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario, and Mayor of Brampton Patrick Brown (politician), Patrick Brown, former Conservative MP Leona Alleslev, former BC MLA and Conservative MP Marc Dalton, and former Huntsville, Ontario, Huntsville mayor and Conservative MP Scott Aitchison have announced their candidacies for the leadership. On May 2, 2022, the Party announced that the six verified candidates for the leadership would be Aitchison, Baber, Brown, Charest, Lewis, Poilievre. On July 6, 2022, the Party announced that Patrick Brown had been disqualified "due to 'serious allegations of wrongdoing' that 'appear' to violate Canadian election law." In response, Brown hired lawyer Marie Henein, who requested the Party's dispute resolution appeal committee be convened.


Pierre Poilievre (2022–present)

On September 10, 2022, it was announced that Pierre Poilievre won the leadership on the first ballot.


Principles and policies

As a relatively young party with a mixed political heritage and history, the federal Conservatives are often described as a "
big tent A big tent party, or catch-all party, is a term used in reference to a political party's policy of permitting or encouraging a broad spectrum of views among its members. This is in contrast to other kinds of parties, which defend a determined i ...
" party -
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- UBC Press, 2015)
in a similar manner to the federal Canadian Liberals by encompassing members and voters who hold a variety of philosophies, ideas and stances, albeit sitting within the centre-right politics, centre-right to the Right-wing politics, right-wing of the political spectrum. Broadly, the party is defined as practicing the Canadian model of Canadian conservatism, conservatism and fiscal conservatism. Some political observers have noted the two most dominant wings of the party traditionally represented Red Tory and Blue Tory ideologies, whereas others have argued that the party has become less internally defined by these labels and that the terms tend to be used by outsiders. Other smaller but visible factional beliefs espoused by individuals within the party have been described by media commentators as liberal conservative, social conservative, right-wing populist and libertarian conservative. In an effort to create a cohesive platform following its creation, the Conservative Party declared its founding core philosophies and principles to be fiscal accountability, upholding individual rights and freedom, belief in constitutional monarchy, the institutions of Parliament and Canada's democratic process, support for strong national defense, law and order, and Canada's history and traditions, and equal treatment for all Canadians.


Party platform and policies

Since 2013, the party has amended and expanded its policies to include the following. Policies in the party platform do not use the same headings as this list does. Culture * Official bilingualism in Canada, Bilingualism * Multiculturalism in Canada, Multiculturalism Economic regulation * Supply management for certain agricultural industries * Extraction of petroleum * Free trade * The right to own private property Foreign policy * Increasing military spending to 2 percent of GDP * CANZUK formation and membership * NATO membership * United Nations membership * Excluding abortion funding from foreign aid * Support for Israel Governance * An elected Senate of Canada, senate * Decentralization * Canadian federalism * Monarchism in Canada, Monarchism Government spending * Publicly funded healthcare * Public pensions * Streamlined government services * Balanced budget legislation * Debt repayment * Reducing grants and subsidies to businesses Law-enforcement * Right of licensed individuals to own firearms * Mandatory minimum sentencing for violent crime Life issues * Allowing MPs free votes on
abortion Abortion is the termination of a pregnancy by removal or expulsion of an embryo or fetus. An abortion that occurs without intervention is known as a miscarriage or "spontaneous abortion"; these occur in approximately 30% to 40% of pre ...
* Opposition to assisted suicide Taxation * Tax simplification * Income taxes in Canada, Income tax reductions * Corporate tax, Business tax reductions * Capital gains tax reductions * Opposition to a carbon tax


Domestic policies

In its current platform, the Conservative Party states that its core objectives are to protect the lives and property of ordinary citizens, promote democratic accountability and reform the Senate of Canada, senate to make it a fully elected chamber. While the party platform states it is open to debate over electoral reform, it also claims it will not support changing the current electoral system.https://cpcassets.conservative.ca/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/15090948/9f7f204744e7480.pdf The party calls for a "restoration of a constitutional balance between the federal and provincial and territorial governments" in regards to Canadian federalism. The Conservative Party also advocates offering tax incentives, increased business investment and more political autonomy to assist and integrate Indigenous Canadian communities over state affirmative action. Historically, Conservative MPs have been somewhat divided on the issue of same-sex marriage in Canada, with individuals in the party arguing for and against. During debates on Bill C-38 in 2004 which would redefine the legal definition of marriage in Canada, a majority of Conservative MPs voted against when then leader Stephen Harper allowed a free vote. Under Harper's premiership, the party proposed reopening the debate into same-sex marriage but following a defeat of the motion in the House of Commons stated it would not seek to reopen it. In 2016, the Conservatives amended the party constitution to recognize and support same-sex marriage. Since the amendment, more Conservative MPs have come out in support of same-sex marriage and pledged to uphold LGBTQ rights. The Conservative leadership has supported changing the law to allow homosexuals to donate blood.


Economic and environmental policies

The party wants to keep the "Fiscal Balance" (which it introduced in its 2007 Budget while in government) in place and eliminate national debt. It also supports more simplified tax codes, controls on government spending and reductions in both personal and business taxes. Former party leader
Erin O'Toole Erin Michael O'Toole (born January 22, 1973) is a Canadian politician who has been the member of Parliament (MP) for Durham since 2012. A member of the Conservative Party, O'Toole served as the party's leader and the leader of the Official ...
has listed economic recovery following the COVID-19 pandemic as a core priority for Canada. The party also supports abolishing the Carbon Tax. At the party's March 2021 policy convention, delegates voted 54%-46% to reject a proposal expand the party's existing climate change policies to include a statement that climate change is real, proclaim that Conservatives were "willing to act" on the issue, and calling for more innovation in green tech.


Foreign policy

The Conservative Party presently supports Canada's involvement in NATO and international trade agreements, including a CANZUK agreement that would enable mobilization of goods, trade and people between Canada, New Zealand, Australia and the United Kingdom. The party is also supportive of Israel and Conservative leaders
Andrew Scheer Andrew James Scheer (born May 20, 1979) is a Canadian politician who has served as the member of Parliament (MP) for Regina—Qu'Appelle since 2004. Scheer served as the 35th speaker of the House of Commons from 2011 to 2015, and was the lead ...
and
Erin O'Toole Erin Michael O'Toole (born January 22, 1973) is a Canadian politician who has been the member of Parliament (MP) for Durham since 2012. A member of the Conservative Party, O'Toole served as the party's leader and the leader of the Official ...
have both expressed support for moving Canada's embassy to Jerusalem. However, the party also supports taking a tough stance against the Chinese Communist Party and has pledged to prevent China from entering Canada's 5G Networks. The party also calls on Canada to encourage other Western nations to prevent Chinese government backed corporations from accessing and taking control of important media, energy, internet, defense and security related infrastructure.


Canadian identity, social policies and immigration

The party supports maintaining the Official Languages Act ensuring that English and French have equality of status in Canada. It also calls for the protection of Canada's history, culture and heritage. It also supports the re-establishment of the Office of Religious Freedom. The party currently calls for an immigration system that is "non-partisan, welcoming and well-managed" that encourages merit-based immigration and enticement of skilled workers to Canada to boost the economy whilst also taking a zero tolerance stance on illegal immigration and ensuring that immigrants speak English or French. The Conservatives also want to streamline the process of granting Canadian citizenship to foreign born children adopted by Canadian nationals, speed up the validation of refugee claims and give help to persecuted religious and sexual minorities whilst ensuring those who do not meet refugee status are escorted out of the country. Some MPs within the party have proposed a ''Canadian values test'' for prospective immigrants and long-term visitors, although this has not been adopted as a policy as a whole. Following the 2019–20 Hong Kong protests, several members of the party including former leader
Erin O'Toole Erin Michael O'Toole (born January 22, 1973) is a Canadian politician who has been the member of Parliament (MP) for Durham since 2012. A member of the Conservative Party, O'Toole served as the party's leader and the leader of the Official ...
called on the Canadian government to grant asylum to fleeing Hong Kong pro-democracy protesters facing extradition orders to China. The party also proposes eliminating birthright citizenship unless one of the parents of a child born in Canada has permanent residency or Canadian citizenship.


Law and order

The Conservative Party generally supports a tough law and order stance. Presently, the party argues for a national register for convicted pedophiles, stricter sentences against repeat offenders, ending early release for violent felons and believes that victims of violent crime should have a say in National Parole Board decisions. The party also supports the creation of a cross-federal task force to tackle organized crime, human trafficking and threats to national security.


Gun ownership

The party states that it supports responsible gun ownership and will "not deprive Canadian Citizens of legally owned firearms" but also calls for cost-effective gun control programs including screening all individuals wishing to purchase firearms and increased enforcement against arms trafficking.


Regional conservative parties

The Conservative Party, while having no provincial wings, largely works with the former federal Progressive Conservative Party's provincial affiliates. There have been calls to change the names of the provincial parties from "Progressive Conservative" to "Conservative". However, there are other small "c" conservative parties with which the federal Conservative Party has close ties, such as the Saskatchewan Party and the British Columbia Liberal Party (not associated with the federal Liberal Party of Canada despite its name). The federal Conservative Party has had the support of many of the provincial Conservative leaders. In Ontario, former
Mike Harris Michael Deane Harris (born January 23, 1945) is a Canadian retired politician who served as the 22nd premier of Ontario from 1995 to 2002 and leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario (PC Party) from 1990 to 2002. During his time ...
cabinet members
Tony Clement Tony Peter Clement (born January 27, 1961) is a Canadian former federal politician and former Member of Parliament for Parry Sound—Muskoka in Ontario. Before entering federal politics, Clement served as an Ontario cabinet minister, including ...
, and John Baird (Canadian politician), John Baird were ministers in Harper's government. Former radio talk show host Eric Duhaime leads the Conservative Party of Quebec, which was formed in 2009 in the wake of the decline of the Action démocratique du Québec (ADQ), the party that previously carried the support of many provincial conservatives. Cross-support between federal and provincial Conservatives is more tenuous in some other provinces. In Alberta, relations became strained between the federal Conservative Party and the Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta, Progressive Conservatives prior to its provincial loss in 2015 Alberta general election, 2015 election and eventually merger with the Wildrose Party into the United Conservative Party in 2017. Part of the federal Tories' loss in the 2004 election was often blamed on then Premier Klein's public musings on health care late in the campaign. Klein had also called for a referendum on same-sex marriage in Canada, same-sex marriage. With the impending 2006 election, Klein predicted another Liberal minority, though this time the federal Conservatives won a minority government. Klein's successor Ed Stelmach tried to avoid causing similar controversies; however, Harper's surprise pledge to restrict bitumen exports drew a sharp rebuke from the Albertan government, who warned such restrictions would violate both the
Constitution of Canada The Constitution of Canada (french: Constitution du Canada) is the supreme law in Canada. It outlines Canada's system of government and the civil and human rights of those who are citizens of Canada and non-citizens in Canada. Its contents a ...
and the North American Free Trade Agreement. The rise of the Wildrose Party in Alberta has caused a further rift between the federal Conservatives and the Albertan PCs, as some Conservative backbench MPs endorse Wildrose. For the 2012 Alberta general election, 2012 Alberta election, Prime Minister Harper remained neutral and instructed federal cabinet members to also remain neutral while allowing Conservative backbenchers to back whomever they chose if they wish. Wildrose candidates for the concurrent 2012 Alberta Senate nominee election, Senate nominee election announced they would sit in the Conservative caucus should they be appointed to the Senate. After the 2007 budget was announced, the Progressive Conservative governments in Nova Scotia and Newfoundland & Labrador accused the federal Conservatives of breaching the terms of the Atlantic Accord. As a result, relations worsened between the federal government and the two provincial governments, leading Newfoundland & Labrador Premier Danny Williams (Canadian politician), Danny Williams to denounce the federal Conservatives, which gave rise to his ABC (Anything But Conservative) campaign in the 2008 election.


Composition


National Council

The National Council of the CPC is its "highest governing body". The Council president, Robert Batherson—who was elected by CPC delegates on March 21, 2021, at the March 18–20 virtual policy convention to replace Scott Lamb—is the first president to come from the Atlantic provinces since the CPC was founded in 2003. Batherson and the Council—along with the "campaign team working with the [Conservative] Fund"—will focus on ensuring that
Erin O'Toole Erin Michael O'Toole (born January 22, 1973) is a Canadian politician who has been the member of Parliament (MP) for Durham since 2012. A member of the Conservative Party, O'Toole served as the party's leader and the leader of the Official ...
becomes prime minister in the next federal election. While the National Council potentially has 21 members according to its constitution, there were no CPC candidates from either Nunavut or the Northwest Territories so these seats remain vacant until byelections are held, which will be in the next three months. The 21 seats—which are apportioned based on the of MPs it has in the House of Commons—include 4 from Ontario, 3 from Quebec, 2 from British Columbia, 2 from Alberta, 2 from Saskatchewan, 2 from Manitoba, 4 from Atlantic Canada, 1 from the Yukon Territories, 1 from Nunavut, and 1 from the Northwest Territories. On March 20, 2021, O'Toole proposed to the CPC Caucus at their annual meeting that they "embrace environment-friendly policies ahead of a likely federal election" in 2021. In preparation for the March 18–20 virtual policy convention, riding associations organized grassroot voting to determine which 34 resolutions would advance to plenary debate on potential changes to the CPC's Policy Declaration, with 6,500 votes cast for 196 policy proposals. The proposals to include the sentence, "we recognize that climate change is real. The Conservative Party is willing to act." in the Policy Declaration was rejected by 54% of delegates.


Geography

The Conservative Party has historically been strongest in the Canadian Prairies as well as rural Ontario. The party is strongest particularly in the provinces of
Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...
and Saskatchewan, where it holds 30 out of 34 and all 14 federal seats respectively. It tends to be weaker in Quebec and Atlantic Canada, particularly Newfoundland and Labrador and Prince Edward Island.


Party leadership figures


Leader


Deputy Leader

The Deputy Leader is appointed by the Leader.


Party presidents

* Don Plett (2003–2009; interim until 2005) * John Walsh (Canadian politician), John Walsh (2009–2016) * Scott Lamb (lawyer), Scott Lamb (2016–2021) * Robert Batherson (2021–present)


Parliamentary Caucus


House of Commons


Senate Caucus

The Conservative Party's senate parliamentary group, caucus is the only political Senate Group that is formally linked to a Federal political party. Unlike the Independent Senators Group, Canadian Senators Group and the Progressive Senate Group, which are unaffiliated with any party in the House of Commons, Conservative senators form part of the national Conservative parliamentary caucus made up of members of both houses of parliament, though the senators do meet separately to discuss Senate-specific issues. The caucus was created following the establishment of the modern Conservative Party of Canada on February 2, 2004, as a result of the merger of the
Canadian Alliance The Canadian Alliance (french: Alliance canadienne), formally the Canadian Reform Conservative Alliance (french: Alliance réformiste-conservatrice canadienne), was a centre-right to right-wing federal political party in Canada that existed ...
and the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada. All but three Progressive Conservative Senators joined the Conservative Party and were redesignated as Conservative senators. When in government, the leader of the caucus has been appointed by the national Conservative Party leader, serving as Prime Minister of Canada. When in Opposition the leader is elected by Conservative senators. Most recently, Don Plett was elected Senate Conservative leader on November 5, 2019, defeating one other candidate. The first leader of the senate caucus, John Lynch-Staunton, also served as interim leader of the Conservative Party of Canada until a leadership election could be held. The Senate Conservative Caucus and the Conservative MPs in the House of Commons jointly constitute the national Conservative caucus. Nevertheless, Denise Batters was permitted to remain a member of the Senate Conservative Caucus despite being expelled from the national Conservative caucus on November 16, 2021, for publicly opposing the leadership of Erin O'Toole.


Conservative leaders in the Senate


Electoral results


See also

* List of federal political parties in Canada * Predecessor parties: ** Conservative Party of Canada (1867–1942) ** Progressive Conservative Party of Canada (1942–2003) **
Reform Party of Canada The Reform Party of Canada (french: Parti réformiste du Canada) was a right-wing populist and conservative federal political party in Canada that existed under that name from 1987 to 2000. Reform was founded as a Western Canada-based protest ...
(1987–2000) **
Canadian Alliance The Canadian Alliance (french: Alliance canadienne), formally the Canadian Reform Conservative Alliance (french: Alliance réformiste-conservatrice canadienne), was a centre-right to right-wing federal political party in Canada that existed ...
(2000–2003)


Notes


References


Further reading


Archival holdings


Conservative Party of Canada - Canadian Political Parties and Political Interest Groups
- Web Archive created by the University of Toronto Libraries
Conservative Party of Canada (French) - Canadian Political Parties and Political Interest Groups
- Web Archive created by the University of Toronto Libraries


External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Conservative Party Of Canada Conservative Party of Canada, 2003 establishments in Canada Conservative parties in Canada Centre-right parties Federal political parties in Canada International Democrat Union member parties Organizations based in Ottawa Political parties established in 2003 Right-wing politics in Canada Toryism